Sparkill, N.Y. - The St. Thomas Aquinas athletes came out in full force joining the STAC Student Government Association in the 14th Annual Walk for the CJ Foundation for SIDS.  The athletes gathered donations and participated in a two mile walk around the STAC campus acknowledging the severity of the cause.

The CJ Foundation for SIDS is a national charitable organization dedicated to recognizing the special needs of the SIDS community through funding SIDS research, support services and public awareness programs.  The Foundation hopes to increase public awareness of SIDS
and to contribute to a future in which no parent is faced with the tragedy of losing a loved one to SIDS.

Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) is one of the leading causes of death among infants one month through one year of age in the United States. The National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) defines SIDS as the sudden death of an infant under one year of age which remains unexplained after a thorough case investigation,
including performance of a complete autopsy, examination of the death scene and review of the clinical history. SIDS is therefore a diagnosis of exclusion, affixed only once all known and possible causes of death have been ruled out.  SIDS claims the lives of almost 2,500 infants in the US each year.  That's nearly 7 babies every day. SIDS deaths occur unexpectedly and quickly to apparently healthy infants, usually during periods of sleep. It is not caused by suffocation, choking, or smothering. SIDS cannot be predicted or prevented and can claim any baby, in spite of parents doing everything right.

The Student Government Association has worked with STAC President, Dr. Margaret Fitzpatrick to make the SIDS Walk an annual campus event. This year's walk saw an outpouring of compassion among the athletes along with their fellow students and supporters.

For more information on SIDS or to join the battle make a donation, please visit the CJ Foundation for SIDS at http://www.cjsids.com.

-Provided by St. Thomas Aquinas Sports Information department.